shinju

puri puri tsuru tsuru Funny, it sounds like I'm describing a baby's skin too.

Thanks for directing us to the web site for Japanese style chashu. I've also tried various styles looking for the right taste and texture similar to the ramen shop topping, and have not been happy with any of them until I saw the web page. Either I've been skipping steps or blind, it's the browning of meat before simmering that may do the trick. I've tried roasting, barbecuing, steaming, and simmering/braising alone, but never combined browning and simmering for making chashu. I do that when make American style pot roast.

I see that uni is associated with Hokkaido, but I'm curious - is uni really coming from Hokkaido area? We were there for 1 week several years ago and found that their food is _very_ good, especially seafood. We stayed at several ryokan in Hakodate, Sapporo area and Otaru and enjoyed gorging ourselves. The best was donabe with uni, but skipped on melons - did not think it was worth the price. I've read recently in Bay Area newspaper (N. CA) that best uni in the world actually comes from Central coast of California and much of it used to get shipped directly to Japan, but now it is becoming available in the US (Japanese grocery stores). Any thoughts on this?

Similar to fried founder with yuba, but another way to use yuba is simply rolling maguro with fresh yuba and slicing into about two inch slice. Also good smearing some umeboshi on yuba before rolling.

Wow - this potato salad sounds so Japanese. It sounds very intriguing though. I like to use umeboshi in salad dressing and with fish. But, my favorite way to eat it is just pop it in my mouth and eat it like a snack or grind some umeboshi with a bit of shoyu and dip homemade tofu or yuba and eat. So wonderful!

Does anyone have any information concerning Japanese culinary schools in Japan? I'm not interested in becoming a chef, but very interested in learning all the basics of Japanese cooking. Have you personally attended any culinary school in Japan or do you know of anyone who have and their experience? Thanks so much.

Torakris - you mentioned a karaage drenched in ponzu sauce and served with mayo. Can you elaborate more on this dish? Can you tell if karaage was marinated in ponzu sauce and drenched in thickened ponzu or straight ponzu sauce? What type of mayo sauce and was it served on the side? I like the sound of this dish very much and want to try duplicating it.

I see that you have made tofu and if you can make tofu, you can certainly make your own yuba. It's not hard to make although first few attempts will result in somewhat lopsided yuba sheets (but still tastes great). You want soy milk that is richer than the regular soy milk for making tofu. The last several sheets of yuba will be richer tasting than the first ones because the liquid becomes more concentrated as it simmers. Fresh yuba is great with nothing more than shoyu and perhaps a squeeze of yuzu or lime.

Funny you mention not including shoyu with umeboshi because of saltiness. I always put a dab of shoyu when I eat umeboshi and two of my nephews acted like they have never seen anyone do that. After I eat umeboshi, I always drop the seed into my hot tea. It's very tasty that way and have been doing that since I was a kid. Thank you Kris for the welcome. It's great to find Japan food related group. Although I love to cook all types of food, Japanese cooking is my passion.

Greetings from California. Really enjoy reading about tofu making. I''ve been making tofu for about 2 years now and even showed a number of my relatives including some Japanese women friends of my mother how to make tofu at one setting. I first showed how to make it once and had each one make their own one by one. It was lots of fun. I purchase soy beans called Laura beans from a farmer in midwest. According to him most of his beans are exported to Japan. These beans have wonderful mild flavor and perfect for soy milk and tofu. Although I've become quite proficient in making regular tofu and yuba, I have not been successful with kinugoshitofu. It seems to never set quite right (too soft). Fresh homemade tofu still warm is so wonderful - I love to eat it with a bit of umeboshi paste mixed with shoyu and nothing more.

Hiroyuki - your umekatsuo recipe sounds good. I like to use umeboshi and also ume fruits for different recipes. Every two years I make umeshu, but this year I decided to make some ume jelly and although ok, it seems to have some "green" taste to it that I'm not sure about. Perhaps to make ume jelly or jam, ume needs to be more ripe. My favorite way to use umeboshi is to make it into a paste and mix with some miso to come to about 1 T and combine that with mirin and mayo. Broil fish for several minutes and smear the sauce and finish off by browning the top. It is especially good with tara.